The Team ventures out of their forte and attempts to stake a claim in the venerable puzzle genre with Chu-Chu Rocket. But don't expect to be staring at a still screen for hours on end, constantly muttering "impossible" until that magical moment when the whole scenario clicks and you uncover the solution to the puzzle with the triumphant exclamation "of COURSE!" This is still Sonic Team, after all; "Sonic" being the key word.

   So here's the concept in a nutshell: you've got to herd those retarded-looking mice (Chu-Chu's) into your rocket whilst avoiding the swirly-eyed cat thing (Neko's, Japanese for cat). This is done via arranging the arrow tiles on the ground, which the Chu-Chus will follow (but so will the Nekos). Keep an eye open, though...if one of those freaky felines finds its way into your rocket, it will promptly feast upon 1/3 of your mice. Okay, it all sounds simple enough, so what's the catch? Multi-player chaos, dude. Grab three of your closest buddies and prepare to shift the tides of fate and become mortal enemies. But freak not if your buddies can't make it (or if they still refuse to play with you as a result of the Mario Party incident...oh c'mon, you know what I'm talking about). Enter cyberspace via the DC modem and prepare to battle online against three other mouse activists! Bring sedatives.

   But the insanity doesn't stop there...keep an eye open for special colored Chu-Chus. Direct one of these little squeakers into a rocket, and one of the following random effects will occur:

• Chu-Chu Fever -- The Chu-Chu spawn points (the places the Chu-Chus are flowing out of) go cracker jacks, spewing forth a flowing stream of the maniacal mice.
• Chu-Chu Bonus -- A whole horde o' Chu-Chus get a one way ticket into one lucky player's rocket.
• Neko Fever -- It's like Chu-Chu Fever, except with Nekos. This is a bad thing.
• Neko Present -- One lucky schnook gets off scot-free while the other three players score a Neko sent straight into their respective rockets. Meow!
• Timeout -- A free breather so the blood flowing from your thumbs gets a chance to clot.
• Everybody Switch! -- All four rockets perform the switcheroo!
• Slow Down -- The game slows down to half speed.
• Speed Up -- The game picks up to double speed and there is no god.

   One area CCR specializes in is modes. Modes, modes, and some more modes thrown in for good measure. Here's a rundown of the many different ways to play:

• Four-player Battle -- One to four players move some mice over 24 game boards. The first one to reach a set number of points is the winner.
• Team Battle -- Just in case losing three friends all at once is too much for you to handle, you can team up with your best bud and go two-on-two against your lesser comrades.
• Stage Challenge -- You'll need a spare friend to lend you a hand through this mode. Meet the given criteria (like saving all the Chu-Chus or having a Neko devour the little buggers) across 24 game boards.
• Puzzle -- Okay, here's where fans of more traditional puzzlers will get their fifteen minutes of glory. You know the ropes: scope out the scenario, then place your allotted arrows onto the board in a pattern which will get the Chu-Chus safely to their rocket. Once you think you've got it, hit START and see the fate you have formed for the Lemming-esque rodents. Beat the 24 boards, and 24 more open up.
• Puzzle Edit -- Create your own Puzzle Mode layouts and save 'em to your VMU to sic on your friends ("friends" probably used very loosely by this point).
• Network -- This is for when your buddies walk out (with your beer and pizza) and you're left with nobody to play with. (Or if you just didn't have enough buddies to begin with...) Select a victim online, secure in the knowledge that they can't possibly make off with your pizza.
• Homepage -- Zips you directly to the CCR page on the Dricas network.

   Like Sonic Adventure, Sonic Team plans to support CCR's internet mode to the fullest, offering special downloads and various online tournaments in the future. So far, there's been two special contests: the first sponsored by Famitsu magazine, challenging players to beat some extra-hard Famitsu-designed levels. The second (which began on Christmas Eve '99) is comprised of 25 Christmas puzzles. There's also been a download that adds another character model to replace the Chu-Chus with (similar to the Nightopians and Chao you can replace them with after completing the game).

   Upon its release, Chu-Chu Rocket sales shot straight up to the #1 slot for its first week, then plummeted clear off the top ten the next and continued to nosedive thereafter. Regardless, that's still not bad for a Dreamcast game, as the DC hasn't exactly enjoyed the phenomenal success in its home country that it has in the Western Hemisphere. There are two CCR packages available: all by its lonesome for a mere ¥2,800 (around $25), or plunk down an extra 2000 yen and get it packaged with a limited-edition transparent orange controller (pictured below).

   Freak not if you can't make it to Japan, 'cause CCR'll be rocketing its merry way across the Pacific and landing on US shores on March 2! TSUBABABABA!

This page is the fault of Jared "Green Gibbon!" Matte. But make no mistake, NEO GHZ is a part of SonicNEXT. All Sonic related materials are copyright Sega Enterprises. SonicNEXT is created by Zifei Wu. Space provided by VGHQ.com. Rokketo suuugoooiii! TSUBABABABA!